Lincoln Memorial Rededication

2009-05-30T14:14:53-04:00https://images.c-span.org/Files/1a3/286722-m.jpgThe Lincoln Memorial was rededicated to mark the 2009 bicentennial of President Abraham Lincoln’s birth. The memorial was originally dedicated on May 30, 1922. Among those in attendance that day was President Lincoln’s eldest and only surviving son, Robert Todd Lincoln. Speakers talked about the history of the memorial and the role of Abraham Lincoln and the Lincoln Memorial in the struggle for freedom and equality. Topics included the remarks of Robert Russa Moton, the second president of the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama, at the original dedication ceremony. The only black speaker at that segregated ceremony, his remarks on racial equality were censored. The program also featured performances by the United States Marine Band and by William Farley, winner of Poetry Out Loud, who read a poem by Carl Sandburg.

This Lincoln Memorial Rededication Retrospective was presented by the National Mall and Memorial Parks in collaboration with the Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States, the Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission, and the Military District of Washington.

The Lincoln Memorial was rededicated to mark the 2009 bicentennial of President Abraham Lincoln’s birth. The memorial was originally dedicated on May 30, 1922. Among those in attendance that day was President Lincoln’s eldest and only surviving son, Robert Todd Lincoln. Speakers talked about the history of the memorial and the role of Abraham Lincoln and the Lincoln Memorial in the struggle for freedom and equality. Topics included the remarks of Robert Russa Moton, the second president of the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama, at the original dedication ceremony. The only black speaker at that segregated ceremony, his remarks on racial equality were censored. The program also featured performances by the United States Marine Band and by William Farley, winner of Poetry Out Loud, who read a poem by Carl Sandburg.